top of page
What are the key ethical and legal issues involved in the use of robotic surgeons?

Lesson PLan

Charlie McKee

Objectives:

  1. Students will understand the ethical and legal issues regarding the use of robotic surgeons and electronic health reports.

  2. Students will identify theoretical problems robotic companies and hospitals might face.

  3. Students will analyze and compare the statistics of both robotic surgeons and non-robotic surgeons to determine which would be more effective for the hospital and the patient.

Lesson:

  1. Opening Question (Hook) - 2 min

Q: Would you be willing to let a robot perform a life or death surgery on you?

Q: Do you think it is ethical at all for computers to essentially decide someone’s fate?

  1. Opening Statement (Here is what we know) - 1 min

  • Robots are better at following complex tasks than we are.

    • Robots are faster, smarter, and do exactly what they are told.

    • They are unable to make outside judgments for themselves.

    • Robots strictly obey by the information they have and are unable to rationalize independently.

    • Is this going to be an issue?

      • YES

  1. Legal Issues (Lecture); Source: (Mavroforou),(O’Sullivan) - 4 min

Q: When things do go wrong, who is responsible?

  • One way of looking at this problem is by not giving complete control to the robot.

    • “let the humans do what humans can do best, and let the machines do what's more suited to the machines” (O’Sullivan).

  • Look at the problem similar to autonomous driving accidents.

    • The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) describes 6 levels of autonomy from level 0 to level 5.

    • Levels 0-2 the blame lands on the human

    • Levels 3-5 are controversial but largely lean towards the fault of the manufacturer.

Q: What if the computer is hacked or tampered with? Is the company still responsible for the machine?

  • Cybersecurity is a massive issue when addressing any topic regarding the use of computers.

  1. Ethical Issues (Lecture); Source: (Berner) - 3 min

  • Health Information Technology(HIT) has improved patient safety drastically.

  • The key ethical issue regarding HIT electronic health reports (EHR.)

  • Patient’s choice in sharing information.

  1. Statistical Analysis (Activity); Source: (Salman),(Zikos) - 2 min

  • Recognizing the cost and maintenance associated with robotic surgeons.

    • Robotic: $30,540 Non-Robotic: $46,704

    • Procedure dependent, some surgeries are cheaper with robots, others are not.

  • Take into account the risk of using new technology.

    • Using new and rapidly evolving technology is dangerous. Scientists are not fully sure what robotic surgeons are capable of and the most valuable piece of reassurance is an experience-- to which, we have very little with robotic surgeons.

  • Comparing mortality rates

    • “Fewer complications were seen in robotic-assisted colorectal, adrenalectomy, and lysis of adhesion; however, robotic esophagogastric and cholecystectomy procedures had higher complications than nonrobotic surgeries” (Salman).

    • Robotic surgery had a lower mortality rate (9.7%) than nonrobotic surgeries.

  1. Epilogue; Source: (Salman) - 1 min

  • Future of robotic surgery and surgical technology

Materials:

  • Pictures of robotic surgeons

  • Pictures of surgeons

  • Hand out of statistics (maybe)

Annotated Bibliography

 

Berner, Eta S. “Ethical and Legal Issues in the Use of Health Information Technology to Improve Patient Safety” HEC Forum, vol 20, no. 3, 2019. ProQuest, www.search. proquest.com/docview/229308678/8582A5833EEF4F2APQ/4?accountid=338

 

In the paper, Berner discusses the battle between the rapidly expanding world of computers and electronic health reports against ethical and legal issues regarding the sharing of health information between hospitals and agencies. This research will help me as I dive into the issues regarding sharing health information and the importance of doctor-patient confidentiality.

 

Mavroforou, A, et al. “Legal and Ethical Issues in Robotic Surgery” International Angiology, vol. 29, no. 1, 2019. ProQuest, www.search.proquest.com/docview/ 365962762/fulltex t/3A46E601B6814D48PQ/1?accountid=338.

 

Mavroforou carefully examines the use of robotics in the operating room and questions the computer's ability to deal with ethical dilemmas. In addition, the paper covers an array of legal issues such as suing and responsibility allocation in cases of malpractice. The paper will be helpful to me as I examine the difficulties surgical robots and robotic companies could face in the future with the development of robotic surgeons.

 

O'Sullivan, Shane, et al. "Legal, Regulatory, and Ethical Frameworks for Development of Standards in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Autonomous Robotic Surgery." The International Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery, vol. 15, no. 1, 2019. ProQuest, www. search.proquest.com/ docview/ 2165532230? accountid=338.

 

In his work, O’Sullivan touches on the ethical and legal regulations in which robotic surgeons are permissible within the OR. He thoroughly discusses the issues hospitals will face with implementing robotic surgeons and compares the developing medical field to the autonomous car industry. The paper will become of aid to me in my research as I work to strengthen my argument for the development of robotics in hospitals and operating rooms.

 

Salman, Muhammad, et al. “Use, Cost, Complications, and Mortality of Robotic versus Nonrobotic General Surgery Procedures Based on a Nationwide Database” The American Surgeon, vol. 79, no. 6, 2019. ProQuest, www. search.proquest.com/ docview/139 9127724/ FFCA0E51A8DF4684PQ/1?accountid=338

 

Salman’s paper covers the use, cost, and complications of robotic surgery compared to non-robotic surgery. His work examines a wide variety of cases of both robotic and non-robotic cases and makes careful evaluations as to which is more beneficial for both the hospital and patient overall. The research is useful to me because I will need a lot of evidence to back up my thoughts on the benefits of using robotic surgeons instead of non-robotic surgeons.

  

Zikos, Dimitris, “Benefits and Restrictions of Robotics in General and Thoracic Surgery” Acta Informatica Medica, vol 18, no. 3, 2019. ProQuest, www.search.proquest.com /docview/1 170617773/65DF5AB3FF8847FDPQ/3?accountid=338

 

Zikos’ paper examines how robotics has benefited a particular field of surgery. His paper covers what the transition from non-robotic to robotic systems has cost and evaluates the benefits and downfalls of both systems. My research will be aided by Zikos’ paper, as I can use his examples of benefits within thoracic surgery and provide theoretical benefits to other surgical fields.

Power Point Presentation
bottom of page